EP0023161B1 - Process for the modification of the physical and biochemical characteristics of animal blood after slaughtering, device for the application of the process, industrial products obtained and derived applications - Google Patents

Description

It is known that the major part of the blood coming from the industrial slaughter of slaughter animals is not recovered, for lack of an economic means allowing its transformation into a form which makes it easily transportable and which is inexpensive in necessary energy to transformation. If we take into account the recovery that is practiced, in particular for human consumption, on 60% of pig blood and, for various other uses, on 30% of bovine blood for various industrial applications, the quantity total blood which is not currently collected is, for example in France, close to one hundred thousand tonnes per year, which represents approximately 70% of the total volume of blood available at the level of slaughterhouses.

• - il est polluant et putrescible et, lorsqu'il est effectué, le traitement d'un litre de sang en station d'épuration revient environ à 16 centimes (évaluation faite pour l'année 1977).
• - par contre, il est riche en matières nobles et, tout spécialement, en protéines qui sont ainsi perdues, voire détruites sans aucun profit.

The blood thus not recovered industrially is then, most frequently, rejected with wastewater, or:

• - it is polluting and putrescible and, when it is carried out, the treatment of a liter of blood in a treatment plant costs approximately 16 cents (evaluation made for the year 1977).
• - on the other hand, it is rich in noble matters and, especially, in proteins which are thus lost, even destroyed without any profit.

It is clear that the results of this operation are totally negative, both from a strictly economic point of view and that of human food, at which level the overall protein deficit has become very significant while the recovery of proteins contained in the blood of slaughterhouses are capable of allowing either their recycling by their use for animal feed or as fertilizer for agriculture, or possibly, their direct use for human consumption.

• 1. séparation ou concentration en deux phases par un moyen physique ou mécanique.
• 2. conservation par le froid.
• 3. déshydratation.

In addition to the well-known methods of direct use of blood in the context of the sausage (sausage) and canning industries, the various possible treatments for its transformation, as they are currently known, use techniques following:

• 1. separation or concentration into two phases by physical or mechanical means.
• 2. cold storage.
• 3. dehydration.

These various treatments all require the use of complex and expensive equipment and the use of a considerable amount of energy. Their various methods are briefly recalled below with the indication of their cost price given below approximately under the simple name "cost". This cost relates to a liter of blood treated as part of a total annual slaughter of the order of 20,000 tonnes of animal carcasses per treatment unit, this tonnage corresponds to approximately 1,000,000 liters of blood.

To the price below, it is advisable to add approximately 5 cents per liter of treated blood (assumption of a collection carried out by tank vehicle from five slaughterhouses) in all cases where the very nature of the process used does not suppose not the treatment of blood on the site of the slaughter.

• a) Centrifugal separation of freshly harvested edible blood: cost 5.6 cents / liter
• b) freezing in fresh whole blood breads: cost: 14.5 cents / liter
• c) freezing in flakes of food-grade plasma: cost 33 cents / liter
• d) drying in a fresh or stored whole blood cooker with sterilization phase at around 125 ° C. then dehydration under vacuum at 45 ° C; cost 22.4 cents / liter
• e) drying in a cooker with preconcentration of fresh or stored whole blood: cost 18.9 cents / liters
• f) spray drying with or without prior concentration of fresh or stored whole blood:
  • 1. cost without concentration: 83.30 cents / liter
  • 2. cost with concentration: 82.8 cents / liter
  • - drying with beads, fresh or stored whole blood: cost 54.1 cents / liter
• h) concentration by ultrafiltration or by reverse osmosis
  • 1. cost of transforming plasma into frozen flakes: 40 cents / liter
  • 2. cost of processing plasma into powder: 600 cents / liter
  • 3. cost of transforming blood into flour: 300 cents / liter

• i) procédé Reprocom de coagulation d'un sang stocké par injection de vapeur dans la masse puis passage au filtre rotatif.
• j) déshydratation sur cylindre Hatmaker de sang entier non alimentaire par séchage sur rouleaux rotatifs à 140 °C.
• k) stérilisation-déshydratation par micro-ondes de sang alimentaire ou non, par concentration sous vide puis stérilisation et séchage en farine par micro-ondes.

The technique also knows the following processes:

• i) Reprocom process for coagulating stored blood by injecting steam into the mass and then passing it through the rotary filter.
• j) dehydration on Hatmaker cylinder of non-food whole blood by drying on rotary rollers at 140 ° C.
• k) sterilization-dehydration by microwaves of food or non-edible blood, by concentration under vacuum then sterilization and drying in flour by microwaves.

The production costs indicated above take into account the remuneration and amortization of the equipment costs relating to the production materials. These investment costs may, for a processing unit as defined above, represent from 250,000 francs to 3,000,000 francs (all of the above costs apply to the year 1977).

With a view to remedying the drawbacks of known methods and relating, depending on the method considered, either to the need to carry out the treatment on the site of slaughter, or to the importance of the energy expenditure to be implemented, or the importance of capital to be immobilized for the construction of equipment, the invention relates to a simplified process for modifying the physical and biochemical characteristics of the blood of animals after slaughter or of the plasma serum thereof after separation, remarkable in which consists of heating the blood in the liquid state before coagulation, or its plasma or serum after separation, to a temperature corresponding substantially to its boiling state while applying slow and continuous stirring to it, then to stop the operation when the blood, plasma or serum has acquired a lumpy consistency corresponding to coagulation in the state, with substantially complete disappearance of the liquid phase.

Furthermore, in order to allow the conservation of blood at the places of slaughter between these periodic collections, the method is preferably remarkable in that it consists in adding to the blood, from the bleeding, an anti-coagulant agent and preferably also a bactericidal agent. It has been found experimentally that the best results are obtained with the use of ethylene diamine-tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) or one of its basic derivatives such as disodium EDTA (EDTA Na ₂ ) which ensures satisfactory storage of blood in the liquid phase by delaying bacterial development for a period of approximately 10 days, then subjecting the blood thus preserved to the heat treatment defined above.

It has been observed that the proportion by weight of EDTA Na ₂ to be added to the blood as soon as the bleeding to assure it, as has just been said, good conservation in the liquid phase for ten days, was substantially 0.50%, the duration of 10 days being considered sufficient to satisfy the conditions of a periodic pickup.

The blood thus preserved, then transported to the places of treatment is then heated in mass gradually with slow and continuous stirring intended to ensure the homogeneity of the transformation phenomenon without however eliminating the fibrin which itself contains proteins which would be lost if the agitation was too strong and that this fibrin came to separate. The treatment thus defined is continued up to the vicinity of the boiling temperature.

The lumpy phase transformation reaction begins around 80-85 ° C and ends around 95-100 ° C, a temperature which, at normal pressure, corresponds to the boiling of blood. Under the conditions in which the experiments were carried out, a period of 15 to 20 seconds elapsed between the start of the reaction and the total transformation which is carried out at the boiling temperature. From this moment, it is no longer necessary to maintain the caloric intake since the total or substantially total transformation is then carried out.

It is then found that a lumpy phase of dark brown color has been obtained (analogous to coffee grounds, although having a larger apparent granulation); this lumpy phase is stable, moist and does not stain fingers.

The weight loss does not exceed 5%, it consists on the one hand, by evaporation and on the other hand, by the presence of a slight "liquid rendering which does not have any drawback because, as will be seen more far, this rendering is taken up during the processing of the "next cuvée without there being an accumulation of" successive renderings.

Immediately after obtaining the lumpy phase as it has just been defined and in order to avoid any onset of bacterial proliferation inside the mass thus brought to high temperature, the content of the treatment tank is preferably cooled. quickly, for example by pouring it in a thin layer on a conveyor belt which runs at a speed appropriate to the level of the point of discharge; the strip is arranged in such a way that at its opposite end, the treated blood has returned substantially to room temperature.

The blood in the stable and moist lumpy phase thus obtained can be stored either in the open air in bulk, or in plastic bags, preferably sealed; it can thus be stored before use for a period of several months without any bacterial proliferation starting to appear.

• - en l'absence de traitement thermique, la dose de 0,5 % d'EDTA Na₂ assure au sang non coagulé un état de retard de prolifération bactérienne pendant une période d'environ 10 jours au-delà de laquelle la prolifération bactérienne s'élève extrêmement rapidement.
• - par ailleurs, si l'on soumet le sang sans addition d'EDTA Na₂ et alors qu'il est encore en grande partie en phase liquide (ce qui suppose alors que le traitement thermique est appliqué immédiatement après la saignée), l'on ne réalise qu'une pasteurisation classique d'effet très limité dans le temps du fait de l'oxydation due à l'air ambiant.

Indeed, it should be noted that a synergistic effect occurs, from the bactericidal point of view between EDTA Na ₂ and the final heat treatment of the process which has just been described. This synergistic effect is highlighted by the following double observation:

• - in the absence of heat treatment, the 0.5% dose of EDTA Na ₂ ensures uncoagulated blood in a state of delayed bacterial proliferation for a period of approximately 10 days beyond which the bacterial proliferation s raises extremely quickly.
• - moreover, if the blood is subjected without the addition of EDTA Na ₂ and while it is still largely in the liquid phase (which then assumes that the heat treatment is applied immediately after the bleeding), only a conventional pasteurization is carried out with a very limited effect over time due to the oxidation due to ambient air.

It seemed interesting to give here an attempt to explain this synergy to the delay in proliferation in the lumpy phase. Indeed, it constitutes a wet environment of organic nature, within which there are therefore internal bio-chemical modifications or transformations in contact with the ambient air; these modifications or transformations determine the release of some of the trace elements contained in the lumpy phase, as it occurs; however, these trace elements do not become available for a cellular metabolism which would authorize bacterial proliferation since free EDTA Na ₂ will complex them (chelate), thus depriving the bacterial flora of elements likely to enable it to carry out this metabolism.

Of course, this assumption is only valid if it is assumed that the lumpy phase heat treatment is applied before all of the EDTA Na ₂ has been used for chelating the liquid phase.

In fact, the minimum dose of EDTA capable of determining the start of anticoagulation, as established by the experiment, is 0.05% of the volume of bleeding blood considered. At 0.02 or 0.03% there is no onset of anticoagulation. On the other hand, around 0.1% the anti-coagulation is total. If the heat treatment is then applied, there remains approximately 0.40% of EDTA to ensure, during the period of several months indicated above, the delay in proliferation in the lumpy phase.

However, it is also possible that the delay in proliferation is due, at least in part, to the fact that the ethylene motif (CH ₂ CH ₂ ), the bactericidal properties of which are known, is present in the molecular structure of EDTA.

It was also found that results comparable to those set out above are obtained when 0.45% of EDTA Na ₂ is combined with 0.05% of EDTA CaNa ₂ .

However, it was found that the results were significantly worse than with the use of EDTA Na _{2 alone} .

For the sake of clarity, it is recalled that the developed formulas of EDTA Na ₂ and EDTA CaNa ₂ are respectively:

However, it has been found that in order to obtain the preservation of blood in the liquid phase with delay in bacterial development before its use, for example in the context of a heat treatment with a view to its transformation into lumpy phase, if the best results are actually currently obtained with the use of ethylene diamine tetra acetic acid (EDTA) or one of its two basic derivatives such as disotic EDTA (EDTA Na ₂ ), it was however possible to replace it with any of the other complexing (or chelating) agents currently known, either in their acid form or in the form of their salts. Similar results are then obtained, with various degrees of perfection which, depending on the use envisaged for the final product, can be considered sufficient.

• - l'acide éthylène diamino dio hydroxylphényl acétique (EDDHA) ou ses sels
• - l'acide nitrilotriacétique ou ses sels
• - l'aciae 1-2 diamino cyclohexane N,N,N',N' tétra acétique ou ses sels.

Among these other complexing agents, there may be mentioned, in addition to EDTA and EDTA Na ₂ mentioned above, all the other EDTA salts, such as the aluminum or magnesium salts, as well than the other known complexing agents such as, in particular:

• - ethylene diamino dio hydroxylphenyl acetic acid (EDDHA) or its salts
• - nitrilotriacetic acid or its salts
• - Aciae 1-2 diamino cyclohexane N, N, N ', N' tetra acetic acid or its salts.

Similar results are also obtained by combining a complexing agent, whether or not derived from EDTA, with an acid, a base, or a salt, due to the activation, which has been experimentally observed, of chelation by l addition of such or such one of these last three elements.

In the case where it is desired to reduce the proportion of EDTA to be added, if this is deemed preferable, for example in the context of the use of the blood thus treated for human consumption, it is possible to synergize the action EDTA then used at a reduced dose (for example 0.1%) or any other complexing agent, by the addition of an acid, a base or a salt. Indeed, it has been found experimentally that these three groups of elements constitute activators of chelation.

It is, for example, possible to use sodium bisulfite which has a certain bactericidal power and an alkaline hydrolysis, therefore with release of hydroxide ions. With regard to acids, cirtic acid can also be used, which is known for its anticoagulant properties, or even of * 4, i, secondary properties of preservative.

It is obvious that, in this case, the delay in bacterial proliferation will be less good. However, this does not present any drawback when it is possible to involve the heat treatment in a very short time. Furthermore, as regards use in the context of human nutrition, it may be envisaged to sterilize the lumpy phase obtained, as well as the possibility has been mentioned below.

The process which has just been exposed above makes it possible to carry out the complete recovery of the blood in all the slaughterhouses with suppression of all the nuisances currently noted either at the slaughterhouse or at the places of treatment. It eliminates any liquid discharge by transforming a colloidal liquid phase into a microbiologically stable lumpy solid phase which can be stored and then evacuated at any time, for example with stercoraries, which reduces pollution rates .

However, the finished product, which can be kept for several months, is very rich in protein elements because there is only a small denaturation of such elements compared to blood from the bleeding, due to the low total caloric intake necessary. to transformation. It therefore has, in the context of the various industrial applications which will be set out below, a significant market value, whereas it should be recalled that in the current state of things, a slaughterhouse must pay to have its blood collected .

Furthermore, the treatment process defined above does not cause any effluent to be eliminated and a certain odor nuisance which appears during the treatment can be eliminated by the use of activated charcoals or peat above the treatment tanks.

In addition, a process has been developed for enriching the lumpy phase with proteins consisting in either coagulating or centrifuging an additional volume of liquid blood, grinding the clot or the mass of globules and platelets thus obtained, then to incorporate the ground product thus obtained into the anticoagulated blood and finally, to subject it to the heat treatment of lumpy phase.

The serum or plasma obtained after the coagulation or centrifugation operations are less rich in protein than the clot or mass of platelets obtained. They can, however, also be incorporated into blood for lumpy phase as has just been said; said resulting lumpy phase is then relatively poor in lumpy phase as has just been said; said resulting lumpy phase is then relatively poor in protein; it can however be assigned to one of the applications described in this patent.

It is clear that in all cases the cost price is very low since, on the one hand, the heat treatment tanks constitute a simple material to produce because the treatment takes place in the open air without any precaution has to be taken and that, on the other hand, the operating cost is, apart from the transport costs, essentially constituted by that of the thermal energy to be used to simply bring the blood to its point boiling. This thermal energy can be estimated at 72,000 kilo-calories per 1,000 liters of blood, while in the example of current conventional pressure cooker treatments described above, the energy expenditure is of the order of 880,000 kilo-calories per 1 000 liters of blood; that is to say that, compared to this process, the energy saving achieved is of the order of 90%. Thus, pollution control is achieved at the lowest cost.

In the description which follows, an example of transformation of the blood into a lumpy phase will be given, calling for a continuous cycle of operations starting from the supply of blood in the liquid phase, anticoagulated as was said above.

The blood thus stabilized by placing in lumpy phase according to the process described above loses its character as a polluting residue and can be used directly for animal feed due to the palatability of the coagulate obtained. For example, it can intervene in the pig fattening diet on the basis of 25 to 30% of the daily ration at an overall humidity rate of around 15%.

It can also be considered as an adjuvant in the context of human nutrition. It should be noted in this regard that the stable and moist lumpy phase obtained according to the process can optionally be brought to 120 ° C in an autoclave. An operation in these conditions for _'20 minutes to set the so treated blood retained the same appearance as the starting material.

In fact the above described operation of putting in lumpy phase can be defined as a coagulation of a particular type.

It is thus possible to have adsorbed or at least purified by sawdust, peat or any other adsorbent, the effluents charged with the slaughterhouse or any other food industry. The whole is incorporated into the lumpy blood and in all these cases, substances with a high fertilizing value are obtained.

By incorporating into the blood thus transformed into a lumpy phase, crushed manure, sewage sludge, sawdust, peat, sand, loam, potting soil, swelling clays, expanded minerals, wet materials and fertilizers, you can get either organic fertilizers, organic amendments, or horticultural substrates. The cost price of these products is advantageous since it eliminates costly industrial grinding and granulated formulation operations.

As a concrete example, when we want to make a fertilizer, we add to the blood which contains nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash both in powder form. We thus produced a complete natural fertilizer.

These various products comprising blood in the lumpy phase of dark brown color, spread on the surface of the ground, first play a physical role of first importance by a delayed release of nutrients in the blood, greater adsorption area and greater porosity, increasing the calorific value of the soil and protecting it from excessive evaporation and from the harms of heavy rain. Finally, by gradually releasing the fertilizing principles from the blood by normal biological alteration, they play their chemical role as fertilizing substances.

It should be noted that the serum, too, like the blood, has the property of coagulating with heat in the same manner as above. The same is true for plasma.

So all the applications that we have just seen for blood, either for the purpose of depollution or for the purpose of producing a fertilizing substrate, can also apply to serum and plasma.

Coagulate blood alone is also palatable for animals, even after prolonged autoclaving if deemed useful (4 hrs at 120 ° C for example).

Blood is then the staple food for livestock, pets and wildlife.

This palatable coagulate can also serve as a support for the ingestion, by animals, of medicinal product.

It can be the basis of bait for fish, rats and nematodes after incorporation in these last two cases of raticides or nematicides.

The present invention also aims to clarify that it is possible to proceed with the desiccation of blood previously transformed into lumpy phase.

Indeed, this drying of the moist lumpy phase leads to a product which is also lumpy, granulated and which is not powdery.

Desiccation can be achieved by subjecting the lumpy phase to heat treatment or simply in the open air, with or without ventilation.

This new dried product, blackish and lumpy in appearance, is very different from ordinary dried blood obtained by conventional means. Indeed, ordinary dried blood is in the form of a very fine brown powder, very pulverulent, which can unfortunately be compacted in the storage hoppers and which can also be suspended by the slightest draft.

It is therefore clear that the blood dried out from the lumpy phase is different from the conventional blood powder in terms of color, but also and essentially in terms of texture and apparent density.

The physical behavior of the blood thus treated, during its use, will therefore be different from that of blood dried using conventional methods, whether it is for example a spreading in the fields or a forced transit in a pipe or a sprayer.

It is the same in the case of ingestion by animals; in fact, the ingestion of powdered blood or flour, therefore of powdered products, causes frequent pulmonary accidents; this new dry, lumpy product eliminates this risk. It can be administered alone or in combination with other complementary food products.

Finally, it has been found that a modification of the physical properties, such as rheological of the sludge, grout, concrete, or mortar and such as of density or porosity for the sludge, pastes for refractory products, mortars and concretes intended to be subjected in cooking was obtained by mixing with these various products the coagulated blood in the lumpy phase as described above in its consistency and in its manufacturing process.

The new state conferred on the blood by application of the above process was defined in a first approach as much as it could be by simple visual observation. According to this definition, the new product appears as a lumpy phase of dark brown color, similar to coffee grounds although having a larger granulation, this lumpy phase being stable, moist and not staining the fingers.

In order to give this definition a more precise character, observations were made with a binocular microscope and macro photographs were taken under these conditions. It has thus been observed that, under a magnification of approximately 30 times, the lumpy phase appears as an aggregate of more or less isolated nodules, adhering to each other, thus forming masses of millimeter dimension (approximately 0.5 mm to 2 mm ).

However, careful observation of these somewhat irregularly shaped nodules has shown that they themselves are made up of an agglomeration of much smaller, spheroid-like granules.

Furthermore, observations carried out, under the same conditions, on blood coagulated with heat, without slow agitation, confirmed the fact, already known, that this blood then coagulates into a homogeneous mass fairly similar to that which is designated in terms of matter. culinary like a "flan"; this mass, which requires release from the mold and which can be easily cut with a knife, will hereinafter be referred to as the "blank structure for the sake of simplification".

In order to better highlight the differences between the lumpy structure and the blank structure, we used a JEOL brand scanning microscope type JSM-U3 assisted by an EDAX system (Energy Dispersive Analysis of X-Rays). -even assisted by a computer capable of processing the data and putting it in memory.

It is recalled here that the EDAX system thus makes it possible, by simple interrogation by electronic bombardment, under very high vacuum, of a sample to be analyzed, to obtain instantaneously by analysis of the energy spectrum of X-ray diffused because of this, the composition, in simple bodies, of the surface layer of this sample, in the order of Mendeleev's classification on the abscissa, by a plot of conventional symbolization providing, on the ordinate, the proportions relative of said simple bodies. The recall, on the display screen, and according to a different symbolization, of the characteristics of a previous sample of non-identical composition previously stored, makes it possible to underline the respective differences in content for all the simple bodies of Nature. The analysis relates to a thickness of the surface part of the sample which can vary, in general, from 0.1 µm to several µm, depending on the particle acceleration voltage which is applied to the device; the presence of a determined body is reflected on the screen by a sort of “peak whose height is linked to the quantity of said body contained in the analyzed volume of the sample and the computer makes it possible to calculate the numerical value of l 'integral of the corresponding peak.

It will be understood that the photographs obtained with a scanning electron microscope are difficult to reproduce within the framework of the graphic processes authorized in the area of patents for invention. It may however be indicated that these photographs taken for each of the two samples of blank structure and lumpy structure, respectively at magnifications x 30, x 300, x 1000 and x 5000 and without displacement of sample, fully confirmed the photographs obtained in macro photography.

That is to say that the lumpy structure of the blood shows a characteristic heterogranulometry and a general structure of the “aggregate” type.

No confusion is possible with the blank structure, guilty with a knife; in the latter case, and whatever the magnification, it is obviously a continuous and homogeneous compact structure. At magnification x 1,000 the surface is very slightly wavy without any beginning of resolution of this practically uniform surface appearing which in fact corresponds to the gel aspect of the blank structure, with the only exception of a few cracks, apart from the central part of the picture taken, similar to those, larger, that can be seen with the naked eye on such a blank or gel structure. On the other hand, at the magnification x 5,000 for which only a crack-free area is concerned, the surface image is practically uniform.

It is quite different with the lumpy structure sample for which in particular the x 1000 and x 5000 photographs clearly show the particle size of said structure. perfectly measurable and in which the spheroidal formations of lumpy blood can be appreciated as having a diameter of the order of 1 to 5 microns.

An explanation can be given of this phenomenon which has not yet been described or applied with regard to the possibilities of industrial applications which it implies.

Indeed, the state of slow agitation in which the blood is maintained from the start of the heat treatment has the effect of putting the material into a state of division which, so that its state of thermodynamic equilibrium is preserved, generates particles spheroids subject to the laws of interfacial tension or surface tension which are only two aspects of the same phenomenon.

More precisely, said matter constituted by the blood, is physically organized in this state.

However, the blood containing proteins, and especially the plasma, these particles coagulate in this state of division and in an irreversible way under the action of the heat to which they are subjected at the same time.

• - le sang n'est aucunement une solution homogène puisqu'il est constitué par un milieu liquide çolloïdal qui contient en suspension les « éléments figurés du sang, c'est-à-dire des globules de différentes natures tels que les hématies et les leucocytes, de même que des fragments de cellules qui sont les plaquettes sanguines, ces éléments, également de nature colloïdale, étant assimilables à des pseudo-solides par rapport au pseudo-liquide constitué par le plasma. Il est donc normal que l'agitation lente, appliquée, selon l'invention, au sang, favorise la mise de celui-ci en état de division.
• ― il il est connu que les colloïdes constituant les éléments figurés du sang présentent une tension superficielle supérieure à celle du plasma puisque, notamment, ils sont parfaitement « mouillés par ce dernier, sans, pour autant, lui être miscibles.
• - il est également connu que la tension superficielle du sérum du sang, qui n'est autre que du plasma (80 gr. de protéines par litre), qui a perdu son fibrogène (4 gr. par litre) à la suite de la formation du caillot des éléments figurés, est très faible à la température ambiante. Elle est, selon les «tables scientifiques « Documenta GEIGY (6^ème édition page 654) de 57 à 58 dynes/Cm à la température de 16-18 °C. En outre, les mêmes tables notent qu'elle s'abaisse à 47 dvnes/cm. à la température de 37 °C. La mesure de la tension superficielle du plasma, peu différente de celle du sérum en raison de leur teneur très voisine en protéines identiques, n'a pas été faite dans le cadre de la présente invention qui présente essentiellement un caractère industriel. Sans que l'on ait à formuler une hypothèse sur le profil de la courbe de variation de cette tension superficielle du plasma, en fonction de sa température, il est cependant évident que pour la température voisine de 80 °C pour laquelle on constate dans les conditions du mode opératoire indiqué, le commencement de la transformation du sang liquide en structure grumeleuse, qu'après que le plasma soit passé de 37 °C à 80 °C la tension superficielle du plasma a atteint une valeur beaucoup plus faible encore.
• - ceci explique que l'état de division créé par l'agitation lente du sang donne naissance, selon les lois de la tension superficielle, à des formations sphéroïdales qui, pour la température voisine de 80 °C où se réalise la coagulation des protéines, présentent le diamètre extrêmement petit qui a pu être mesuré sur les clichés obtenus au microscope électronique.

Attention should be drawn here to a certain number of factors which promote and / or determine this coagulation in the form of spheroidal particles of very small diameter. Indeed :

• - blood is by no means a homogeneous solution since it is constituted by a olloidal liquid medium which contains in suspension the "figured elements of blood, that is to say globules of different natures such as red blood cells and leukocytes , as well as fragments of cells which are the blood platelets, these elements, also of colloidal nature, being assimilated to pseudo-solids compared to the pseudo-liquid constituted by plasma. It is therefore normal that slow agitation, applied, according to the invention, to the blood, promotes the placing of the latter in a state of division.
• - It is known that the colloids constituting the figured elements of blood have a surface tension greater than that of plasma since, in particular, they are perfectly "wetted by the latter, without, however, being miscible with it.
• - It is also known that the surface tension of blood serum, which is none other than plasma (80 gr. of protein per liter), which has lost its fibrogenic (4 gr. per liter) following the formation of the clot of the figured elements, is very low at room temperature. It is, according to the “scientific tables” Documenta GEIGY (6 ^th edition page 654) from 57 to 58 dynes / Cm at a temperature of 16-18 ° C. In addition, the same tables note that it drops to 47 dvnes / cm. at a temperature of 37 ° C. The measurement of the surface tension of the plasma, which differs little from that of the serum because of their very similar content of identical proteins, was not made within the framework of the present invention which is essentially of an industrial character. Without having to formulate a hypothesis on the profile of the variation curve of this surface tension of the plasma, as a function of its temperature, it is however obvious that for the temperature close to 80 ° C for which we observe in the conditions of the indicated procedure, the beginning of the transformation of liquid blood into a lumpy structure, that after the plasma has gone from 37 ° C to 80 ° C the surface tension of the plasma has reached an even lower value.
• - this explains why the state of division created by the slow agitation of the blood gives birth, according to the laws of surface tension, to spheroidal formations which, for the temperature close to 80 ° C where the coagulation of proteins is carried out, have the extremely small diameter which could be measured on the pictures obtained with the electron microscope.

It should be noted that slow agitation is understood to mean agitation which does not, according to a known process, determine the transformation of fibrinogen from blood into fibrin, which would have the effect of clogging treatment equipment and determining the loss of 4% of the plasma protein content since fibrinogen is itself a protein.

Of course, during the transformation into a lumpy structure, there is a more or less pronounced bonding phenomenon between some of the neighboring particles, which explains the formation of nodules of more or less large size themselves connected, for the same reasons, in a general aggregate type structure.

It should be understood, however, that this general structure is of relatively weak cohesion, which explains why the whole ultimately appears as a meeting of more or less important aggregates, independent of each other and which behave substantially in the manner of coffee grounds, that is to say this lumpy whole can be poured, transferred or spread without any difficulty. Obviously, this is quite the opposite of the blank structure, which, after demolding from the container where its coagulation was carried out, would require at least grinding to achieve a somewhat similar result.

It should also be emphasized that the relative weakness of bonding by bonding still the elementary spheroidal microparticles of the lumpy structure which has just been defined above, results in a very superior aptitude for biochemical transformation by agents. exterior, for example when said structure is used as a fertilizer by spreading or else with a great dispersibility when when, as other examples, it is used as an adjuvant in the context of the manufacture of cement paste or the like or pasta intended to be cooked.

Airttti, Íés findings, at first glance purely scientific aspects, with which began this presentation, are in fact of very great importance from the industrial point of view, not only as regards the possibility or ease of handling of blood transformed into a lumpy phase or structure, only with regard to its behavior from the point of view of the possibility of biochemical transformations by which its subsequent action can materialize and also with regard to the possibility of its dispersion in the part of its use as an adjuvant for example of a cement paste manufacture or the like.

Regarding the use as fertilizer or fertilizer adjuvant, it should be noted that coagulation in the form of elementary particles of very small diameter promotes the bio-transformation of the lumpy structure without completely eliminating a certain delay effect which is always favorable in such uses.

With regard to the use as an adjuvant in the manufacture of pastes such as cement pastes it has been found that the presence, in the proportion of approximately 1%, of blood with lumpy structure in such cement pastes has the effect on the one hand, to suppress the formation of spherical air bubbles of large diameter of the order of 1 to 5 millimeters which appear in known processes and are factors of lower resistance to rupture by the size of the voids that they determine, and conversely, to favor a micro-porosity of said pastes within which micro-cavities appear of practically uniform distribution within the paste, and which, observed under the electron microscope after rupture of a test tube witness appear to have an internal surface of irregular appearance and a dimension of the order of 1/100 mm. at 5/100 mm. with exceptional presence of a few cavities, reaching a maximum of 10/100 mm.

Without the causes of this modification of the structure of cement pastes (which also extends to concretes which contain it), being able to be scientifically demonstrated to date, it seems that said causes reside in the modification of the conditions of tension surface tension and interfacial tension due to the presence, within the cement paste, of blood which we know that the surface tension is of the order of 57 dynes / cm. at a temperature of 18 ° C. Furthermore, it is known that this surface tension drops further with a rise in temperature, which is the case in the context of the cement setting reaction which is known to be clearly exothermic.

The use of blood thus transformed into a lumpy structure effectively leads to cement pastes, significant behavioral changes both before and after the solidification of the latter and which will be reported below during the analysis of the comparative measurements which have been carried out.

• la figure 1 est une vue schématique d'un appareillage de traitement thermique du sang selon l'invention, faisant appel à un cycle continu d'opérations.
• tes figures 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 et 7 représentent, deux à deux, la structure flan et la structure grumeleuse photographiées au microscope électronique, respectivement sous les grossissements x 30, x 300 et x 1 000.
• la figure 8 montre de même la structure grumeleuse sous le grossissement x 5000,
• la figure 9 représente le tracé obtenu à l'appareil EDAX, des compositions chimiques respectives des couches superficielles respectives de la structure flan et de la structure grumeleuse,
• la figure 10, un graphe des courbes de vitesse de prise d'une pâte de ciment pour trois éprouvettes dont une éprouvette témoin, une éprouvette contenant 1,5 % de sang transformé en structure grumeleuse et une éprouvette contenant 1,5 % de sang lyophilisé et
• la figure 11 un tableau traduisant, sous forme numérique les principales constatations qui peuvent être déduites de la figure 10.

The characteristics of the invention which have not yet been highlighted in the foregoing description will be clearly understood on reading the description which will follow made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is a schematic view of an apparatus for heat treatment of blood according to the invention, using a continuous cycle of operations.
• your figures 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 represent, two by two, the blank structure and the lumpy structure photographed with the electron microscope, respectively under the magnifications x 30, x 300 and x 1000.
• Figure 8 similarly shows the lumpy structure under the magnification x 5000,
• FIG. 9 represents the plot obtained with the EDAX apparatus, of the respective chemical compositions of the respective surface layers of the blank structure and of the lump structure,
• FIG. 10, a graph of the setting speed curves of a cement paste for three test tubes including a control test tube, a test tube containing 1.5% of blood transformed into lumpy structure and a test tube containing 1.5% of lyophilized blood and
• FIG. 11 a table translating, in numerical form, the main observations which can be deduced from FIG. 10.

In FIG. 1, the apparatus essentially comprises an Archimedean screw elevator arranged in an inclined position, at the bottom of which is brought the liquid blood preheated to about 60 ° C.

As shown in the figure, the elevator is schematically constituted in the following way: The anticoagulated blood and previously preheated to approximately 60 ° C for example on a plate heater schematized in 1 in which it is introduced in 2 at a temperature of 15 at 20 ° C for example, is poured through the orifice 3 into a tank 20 into which plunges the lower end of a cylindrical member 21 inside which an Archimedes screw 22 is rotated by means suitable 33.

Control means, which have not been shown and are of conventional design, are arranged so that the liquid does not exceed a maximum level which is shown at 37 in the figure.

The cylindrical member 21 has two coaxial walls defining an annular space 23 inside which can circulate a fluid brought to a suitable temperature, brought by intake orifices such as 24, 25 and evacuation, not shown.

The annular space 23 is also preferably divided radially by a partition 26 into two spaces 23a, 23b, respectively served by the inlet orifices 24, 25, so as to allow the blood to be subjected to a thermal atmosphere of higher and higher as it will be raised by the Archimedes' screw from the inlet 27 to the outlet 28 according to a temperature growth law which will be defined below -after.

In addition, said Archimedes screw itself has a double wall defining a helical volume 32 inside which a fluid brought to a temperature of the order of 100 to 110 ° C can flow and which is introduced therein suitably for example at the upper end 29a of its hollow axis 29.

Finally, at the base of the orifice 28 is arranged one end of a permeable conveyor belt 34 under which is arranged a hopper 35 allowing the recovery of the slight liquid rendering which has been mentioned above, in a tank 30 which is connected to the receiving tank 20 by a suitable pipe 31 provided with a valve 36 and pumping means 7 arranged so as to reintegrate said rendering into the flow of liquid blood poured into the tank 20.

• Lorsque la vis d'Archimède est entraînée en rotation, elle prend en charge et élève à chaque tour de rotation une certaine quantité du sang anticoagulé contenu dans le bac 20 et elle l'achemine de façon en elle-même bien connue, de l'orifice 27 vers l'orifice 28 et en le maintenant par son mouvement propre, en état d'agitation lente, vers la partie supérieure de l'organe cylindrique 21. Au cours de cette progression, le sang est soumis à l'action de la chaleur provenant, d'une part, du fluide qui circule dans l'espace 23a, puis 23b et, d'autre part, par simple contact avec la vis elle-même, à l'action de la chaleur qui circule dans l'espace hélicoïdal 32. Sa température s'élève donc progressivement.

The device works as follows:

• When the Archimedes' screw is rotated, it takes in and raises a certain amount of the anticoagulated blood contained in the tray 20 at each turn of the rotation and it conveys it in a well known manner, from the orifice 27 towards orifice 28 and maintaining it by its own movement, in a state of slow agitation, towards the upper part of the cylindrical member 21. During this progression, the blood is subjected to the action of heat coming, on the one hand, from the fluid which circulates in space 23a, then 23b and, on the other hand, by simple contact with the screw itself, to the action of the heat which circulates in space helical 32. Its temperature therefore rises gradually.

Furthermore, as indicated above, the lumpy phase transformation reaction begins at around 80 ° C. and it is desirable that from this temperature the total transformation of the blood into lumpy phase be acquired in a very short time. Consequently, it has been judged preferable to organize in the vicinity of the upper part of the cylindrical member an annular chamber 23b separated from the chamber 23a by the partition 26; into the chamber 23b is introduced a fluid at a significantly higher temperature than that which is introduced into the chamber 23a, for example in the vicinity of 120 ° C. It should also be noted that the arrangement consisting in introducing the fluid at a temperature of the same order of magnitude through the upper end of the helical space of the Archimedes screw meets the same condition since it is indeed obvious that this fluid will lose its calories as and when they are exchanged with the blood via the wall of said Archimedes screw with which it is in contact, that is to say as and as it progresses towards the lower end of this screw at the level of which it escapes by means which have not been shown.

Thus, during its ascent in the Archimedes screw, the anticoagulated blood will be gradually brought, on the one hand, to approximately 80 ° C for which begins the reaction of setting in lumpy phase, then from this moment and during a time, the duration of which can be determined by a judicious choice of the temperature of admission of the fluids through orifices 25 and 29 and / or by the length of the portion 23b of the annular chamber 23, up to the final optimum temperature chosen for said lumpy phase.

The blood thus put in lumpy phase will therefore be poured at the level of the orifice 28 on the end of the conveyor belt, from which it will be conveyed to evacuation means arranged at the opposite end.

It should be noted that for better understanding, the blood temperatures have been indicated in FIG. 1 according to the zones considered.

In FIG. 2, established with a JEOL scanning electron microscope of the J.S.M-U3 type, the blank structure seen under a magnification of x 30 shows that the surface of said structure is compact, continuous and homogeneous (see in particular the surface referenced 50). It is however crisscrossed with a few cracks which are perfectly identifiable, such as crack 51. The homogeneous surface 50 and crack 51 being located in the center of the photograph can be followed under the magnifications of x 300 and x 1000 which will be used for the shots shown in Figures 4 and 6.

Figure 3 shows under the same magnification of x 30 a fragment of lumpy structure which, even under this low magnification, shows a heterogeneous appearance which will be highlighted in Figures 5, 7 and 8, respectively established under the magnifications of x 300, x 1,000 and x 5,000. We can, however, distinguish right now, especially on the central part of the picture, the lumpy texture that we notice for example in zones 52, 53 and 54.

Thus, from the implementation of this extremely modest magnification of x 30, one can notice the profound differences that there are between the blank structure and the lumpy structure. These differences will be better and better highlighted in Figures 4 to 7.

In Figure 4, we notice the slightly wavy uniform surface 50 which has already been designated with the same reference in Figure 2, as well as the deep crack 51 which extends towards the bottom of the picture by a narrower crack 55 .

The difference of this structure with the lumpy structure shown in Figure 5 then becomes perfectly obvious, attention should be paid more particularly to the central area 56, which already appears to have a heterogeneous structure within a relatively large lump which occupies, in fact, almost all of Figure 7.

FIG. 6 which reproduces a photograph obtained at magnification of x 1,000, confirms the observations which could already have been made for the blank structure in FIGS. 2 and 4 under the gorsses of x 30 and x 300. We find in Indeed, practically without modification of appearance despite the increase in magnification, the surface 50 which always has the same uniform appearance slightly wavy, just as the crack 55 is here particularly clear.

With regard to this figure, it should be noted that the picture appears to be dotted with small white dots. These points are none other than the phenomenon known as “snow well known to electronics specialists. They should in no way be interpreted as a sign of any lumpy structure because visual observation under the same conditions as those of taking the picture shows that they are in a state of perpetual motion, like "well known snow" early users of television receivers. This phenomenon of "snow will also make it impossible to interpret a picture taken at higher magnification, because it becomes completely predominant on the image, which practically only presents white dots. This is the reason for the fact that no representation of the blank structure at magnification of x 5,000 has been reproduced within the framework of the present patent.

On the other hand, at the same magnification as that used for FIG. 6, that is to say at 1000, FIG. 7 very clearly shows the very particular character of the lumpy structure. As already indicated, FIG. 7 indeed represents an aggregate of elementary nodules which are already quite identifiable there. Nothing similar appears in Figure 6 (blank structure) established at the same magnification.

It was possible to push the magnification up to x 5000 (Figure 8) and the elementary nodules are, under this magnification, perfectly recognizable, for example in 57, 58, 59, 60 and 61.

It is thus clearly demonstrated that the previously known "blank structure" has no point of comparison with the lumpy structure produced according to the process according to the invention.

It should also be noted that a measurement carried out on the elementary nodules highlighted in said FIG. 8 allows them to be assigned a diameter of the order of 1 to 2 microns under the conditions of the experiment shown.

The difference between the two structures is also underlined by the chemical analysis of the surface part of each of them, carried out using the EDAX device integrated into the electron microscope used and, of course, on the same samples.

FIG. 9 represents the photograph obtained, on which were superimposed, by memory recall using the computer, the plots corresponding respectively to the blank structure (envelope curve of the tracing in vertical hatching) and to the lumpy structure ( succession of points possibly joined).

In addition, the characteristic line K of Silicon (Si) chosen from the simple bodies constituting blood is marked on the photograph. The choice of silicon was made because it is present in whole blood, but absent in plasma (see Scientific Tables Documenta GEIGY, 6th edition, cited above, page 583).

In Figure 9, the top line is "791740 EV K Z 14 Si". It means that, to set the vertical reference line referenced 101 in the figure, we chose the "window" 79 (internal characteristic of the device) which corresponds to the energy of 1740 electron volts which is that of the characteristic line K of the element with atomic number Z = 14 which is silicon (Si).

The second line indicates that the vertical scale VS (Vertical Scale) is 2,500 electronvolts per channel (Channel) which means that the device differentiates two elements whose lines are 20 eV apart.

The third line constitutes the indication on the abscissa, of the energies which are represented there (in thousands of electron volts).

The fourth line carries simple service indications: January 7, 1980, sample 01-EDAX.

Finally, he added, below the 4 ^th line, and for ease of review ', a chart materializing in the clear, in relation to the line 3, the position of the x-axis, the main speaker in the simple bodies composition of the blood which corresponds to the "following energies, expressed in thousands of electron volts (energy X emitted):

• - en premier lieu le très important pic de l'argent, axé sur une valeur légèrement supérieure à 3 000 eV doit être négligé car il est dû à la présence de l'argent de métallisation de surface sans lequel l'observation au microscope à balayage serait impossible.
• - en second lieu, il apparaît immédiatement que la composition de la couche superficielle analysée est nettement différente selon que l'on considère la structure flan ou la structure grumeleuse

Analysis of the results can be carried out as follows:

• - first of all the very important silver peak, focused on a value slightly higher than 3000 eV must be neglected because it is due to the presence of surface metallization silver without which the observation with a scanning microscope would be impossible.
• - secondly, it immediately appears that the composition of the surface layer analyzed is clearly different depending on whether one considers the blank structure or the lumpy structure

This last observation marks the clear difference which exists between the two structures within which the elementary components are not organized in the same way and are even so according to a different distribution in the respective surface areas of these two structures.

It is noted, in particular, that silicon appears only in very small proportion in the trace relating to the lumpy structure whereas its presence is materialized by an appreciable peak in the trace relating to the blank structure. However, as has just been said, this element is only reported as present in whole blood when it is not detected in plasma (see Documenta GEIGY cited above). We can conclude that, unlike the blank structure, the surface area of the lumpy structure is almost entirely made up of plasma.

Within the framework of a particular application, as indicated briefly above, the blood transformed into a lumpy structure by the process in accordance with the invention can preferably be used in weight amounts of 0.5 to 2%, for the purpose of modification of the rheological properties of concrete, mortar or the like (mud, drilling mud, grout). In fact, this modification favorably affects the behavior of these concretes or mortars both before and after the solidification phenomenon commonly designated by the term "setting". An embodiment will be given below Comparison of this particular aspect of the invention This aspect relates more particularly to cement pastes, but it is clear that the conclusions are also applicable to concretes which contain them.

First, we compared the behavior of a cement paste without any addition and which serves as a control, with that of the same cement with an addition of lumpy blood, on the speed of setting of cement paste and on the mechanical strength of test pieces made with these pastes. The same experiment was carried out with a cement paste comprising the addition of dry powdered blood obtained in an atomization tower (hereinafter referred to as “lyophilized blood”).

For this, pasta was made where the ratio: water / cement = 0.264 (i.e. 87 ml of water for 330 g of CPA 500 cement) is constant.

It was added or 4.95 g. of blood in a lumpy structure, ie 4.95 g of lyophilized blood per test, thus carrying out tests with 1.5% of blood.

Each paste, well homogenized for 3 minutes, was molded in cylindrical plastic boxes 8 cm in diameter and 4 cm in height.

Il est clair qu'à mesure que le temps s'écoule et que la pâte fait prise, on doit utiliser des aiguilles de plus en plus fines pour pouvoir mesurer un enfoncement notable. Pour chaque mesure on calcule

où D est le diamètre de l'aiguille en centimètres, et où x est l'enfoncement de l'aiguille en centimètres. Donc pour une aiguille donnée, plus l'enfoncement est faible, plus _To est élevé. On porte ces résultats sur un graphe Log-Log :

Ce graphe est représenté à la figure 10 pour chacun des trois échantillons.At time intervals of the order of 15 minutes, the penetration of needles standardized by VICAT (device known as the VICAT probe) was measured:

It is clear that as time passes and the dough sets, we must use increasingly fine needles to be able to measure a noticeable depression. For each measurement we calculate

where D is the diameter of the needle in centimeters, and where x is the penetration of the needle in centimeters. So for a given needle, the lower the penetration, the higher _To is. These results are plotted on a Log-Log graph:

This graph is shown in Figure 10 for each of the three samples.

By convention, we consider the start of setting at time t for which we have _To = 225 g / cm ² with the finest needle. On the graph these values are indicated by an arrow (↑) on the curve (-.-.-).

But comparing these graphs also shows other very interesting facts. First, the insertion of the large needle, which can only be carried out in a soft dough which, for a practitioner, represents the area of workability or time for setting up the dough.

• 950 pour le témoin
• 160 pour le lyophilisé à 1.5%
• 100 pour le grumeleux à 1,5 %

With the large needle, we observe that at 30 minutes the plascitity quantified by the value of _To is:

• 950 for the witness
• 160 for freeze-dried 1.5%
• 100 for lumpy 1.5%

This proves that the addition of blood increases the times for placing the concrete, the best result being obtained for the sample comprising the addition of blood in a lumpy structure.

In addition, if in all cases the blood slightly affects the start of taking, it should be noted with experience "C", made with dried blood powder, that taking is very delayed (flattening of the curve). This is a negative point when by necessity we must consider a release as fast as possible.

Finally at 7 days, these cylindrical specimens were ruptured by applying pressure along the diameter of the cylinder (or along the perpendicular to the generatrix of the cylinder). These rupture tests are called “Brazilian splitting tests and are quantified by

• P est la tension de rupture à la presse hydraulique en Kg,
• d est le diamètre de l'éprouvette en centimètre
• h est la hauteur de l'éprouvette en centimètre
• σ_Br est en déca-Newton/cm² (daN/cm²)

or :

• P is the breaking tension at the hydraulic press in Kg,
• d is the diameter of the test piece in centimeters
• h is the height of the test piece in centimeters
• σ _Br is in deca-Newton / cm ² (daN / cm ² )

In principle one admits that the shear stress is then:

Whatever the criticisms or reservations that one can formulate on such tests, all other things being equal, we can compare the ruptures at 7 days.

The main numerical values of the results obtained are shown in the table in Figure 11.

We notice then that the lumpy blood increases the resistance.

Finally, it must be observed that the blood has played a role of "air entrainer by the disappearance of macroporosity, as is apparent from the findings set out above.

Claims (34)

1. Method of modifying the physical and biochemical characteristics of animal blood after slaughter or of the serum or plasma thereof after separation, characterized in that it consists of heating the blood in the liquid state before coagulation, or the serum or plasma thereof after separation, mass heating being performed, the said mass of blood or plasma or serum (hereinafter designated by the common name « biood _') being stirred continuously and slowly in such a way that the fibrinogen of the blood is not transformed into fibrin, the heating operation thus defined being continued progressively to a temperature which substantially corresponds to the boiling temperature at which the blood is then in the form of a stable and slightly moist grumous phase, with the essentially total disappearance of any liquid phase, with the exception of a slight yield of liquid, the weight of which, added to the loss resulting from the evaporation, does not determine a total loss of more than 5 %.

2. Method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that it consists of adding to the blood, as soon as bleeding occurs, an anticoagulant agent, possibly associated with an acid, a base or a salt, with the aim of activating chelation, and subsequently subjecting the blood thus temporarily preserved in the liquid phase to the treatment according to claim 1.

3. Method as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that it consists of adding to the blood, as soon as bleeding occurs, a bactericidal and/or bacterial proliferation retarding agent.

4. Method as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that both the anticoagulant agent and the bactericidal agent are formed by ethylenediamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA).

5. Method as claimed in one of claims 3 or 4, characterized in that the anticoagulant agent and the bactericidal agent are both formed by one of the EDTA base derivatives.

6. Method as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the EDTA base derivative is formed at least partially by disodium EDTA (Na₂ EDTA).

7. Method as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the EDTA base derivative is formed at least partially by monocalcium disodium EDTA (CaNa₂ EDTA).

8. Method as claimed in claims 6 and 7, characterized in that the EDTA derivative is formed by an association of Na₂ EDTA and CaNa₂ EDTA.

9. Method as claimed in one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that immediately after attaining the grumous consistency the blood thus treated is subjected to rapid cooling suitable for completely preventing the beginning of bacterial proliferation.

10. Method as claimed in claim 9, characterized in that cooling is achieved by pouring the blood thus treated onto a conveyer belt such that it is spread thereon in a thin layer, the length of the belt being such that at its opposite end the treated blood is substantially returned to ambient temperature.

11. Method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the liquid yield is incorporated in the liquid blood of a subsequent operation of the same type.

12. Method as claimed in one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that after the grumous phase has been obtained the latter is subjected to a subsequent sterilizing treatment performed in an autoclave.

13. Method for enriching the blood transformed into a grumous phase according to one of claims 1 to 12, consisting of either coagulating or centrifuging an additional volume of this liquid, grinding the clot or the mass of globules and platelets thus obtained, then incorporating the ground mass thus obtained in anticoagulated blood and finally subjecting the latter to the heat treatment for obtaining the grumous phase.

14. Method for transforming animal blood into a grumous phase by the action of heat as claimed in one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that it consists of circulating a continuous flow of the said blood, initially in the liquid phase, along a suitable determined path, determining the progressive increase in its temperature along the said path until it is close to the boiling temperature, maintaining it in the slowly agitated state until it has reached the temperature at which it acquires a grumous consistency, and subsequently determining the rapid cooling theoreof, until, at the end of the path it has returned to ambient temperature, and finally in collecting the blood thus transformed into the grumous phase.

15. Method for transforming blood previously transformed into the moist grumous phase as claimed in one of the methods according to claims 1 to 14, characterized in that it consists of subjecting the said blood in the moist grumous phase to a heat dessication process and/or a dessication process in the open air and/or under ventilation until a dry product is obtained.

16. Animal blood in a grumous phase obtained by the methods as claimed in one of claims 1 to 12 and 14, characterized in that it is in the form of a stable and slightly moist grumous phase or structure with an appearance similar to that of coffee grounds, dark brown in colour, the said grumous structure being formed by an aggregate of irregularly shaped nodules which are separate from one another or slightly adherent with respect to one another, have millimetric dimensions and themselves are formed by an agglomerate of elementary granules having a spherical appearance and a diameter of the order of 1 to 5 RM.

17. Use of animal blood in the grumous phase as it presents itself according to claim 16, characterized in that the said blood transformed in this manner is used as a food for humans and/or animals.

18. Animal blood in the grumous phase characterized in that, for its use according to claim 17, there is incorporated therein one or more substances having the nature of an additive and/or of an appetizer and/or of a filler suitable for feeding humans and/or animals.

19. Phytosanitary product characterized in that there is incorporated therein blood in the grumous phase as claimed in claim 16.

20. Use of animal blood in the grumous phase as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that it is used as a fertilizer.

21. Animal blood in the grumous phase characterized in that for the use thereof as claimed in claim 20 there is incorporated therein one or more substances with a fertilizing and/or mineral or organic enrichment nature suitable for the preparation of a balanced agricultural or horticultural fertilizer, enriching agent or substrate.

22. Animal blood in the grumous phase, characterized in that for the use thereof according to claim 17, there are incorporated therein waste products from agricultural foodstuffs industries suitable for constituting food products.

23. Animal blood in the grumous phase as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that there are incorporated therein medicinal substances in order to facilitate the ingestion thereof by animals.

24. Animal blood in the grumous phase, characterized in that for the use thereof as claimed in claim 20 there is incorporated therein agricultural or para-agricultural industrial waste suitable for constituting agricultural or horticultural fertilizers, enriching agents or substrates.

25. Equipment for the application of the method as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that it firstly comprises a plate reheater into which there is poured a continuous flow of blood at the initial temperature, the reheater being arranged such that it progressively brings the flow to approximately 60 °C and comprising a discharge aperture via which the blood is discharged ; secondly comprising a collecting tank connected to the discharge aperture ; thirdly, an elongate cylindrical member which is open at both ends, has a double wall and is arranged in an inclined position such that its lower end is at least partially immersed in the blood contained in the collecting tank, the said double wall defining, over the entire length of the cylindrical member, at least one annular chamber provided with means for admitting and evacuating a heating fluid ; fourthly, an Archimedian screw extending into the interior of the cylindrical member and, over the entire length thereof, provided with rotational drive means and comprising a double wall defining a helical space equipped with means for admitting and evacuating a heating fluid, the assembly of the cylindrical member and the Archimedian screw being arranged and the temperature of the heating fluids being selected so as to determine suitably the increase in temperature such that its transformation to the grumous phase occurs at the moment when, owing to the play of the said Archimedian screw, it reaches the upper end of the cylindrical member from where it is discharged by gravity and, finally, fifthly comprising a conveyer belt, one end of which is arranged perpendicular to the said upper end of the cylindrical member so as to receive the blood in the grumous phase being discharged therefrom, this belt being dimensioned and arranged such that the blood is substantially returned to ambient temperature at the moment when it reaches the opposite evacuation end of the belt.

26. Equipment as claimed in claim 25, characterized in that the conveyer belt is made from a permeable material, in that a hopper for recovering the liquid yield not incorporated in the grumous phase is arranged below the said belt, the said hopper being connected to a recovery tank which, in turn, is connected, via a pipe system and suitable pumping means, to the tank for collecting the blood in the liquid phase such that the yield is reintegrated therein.

27. Animal blood previously subjected to the method as claimed in claim 15, characterized in that it is in the form of a grumous, blackish and/or granulated and not pulverulent product.

28. Use of animal blood previously dried as claimed in claim 15, characterized in that it is used as a food product.

29. Use of animal blood in the grumous phase as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that it is used as an additive in order to midify the rheological properties of sediments, drilling sediments, fillings, concretes, mortars by adding the coagulated blood in the grumous phase thereto.

30. Method as claimed in claim 29, characterized in that the proportion of blood added is between 0.5 % and 2 % by weight.

31. Use of animal blood in the grumous phase as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that it is used as a firing additive in order to modify the physical properties, in particular the density and/or porosity of sediments, pastes for refractory products, mortars or concretes by adding the coagulated blood in the grumous phase thereto before the said firing.

32. Sediments, drilling sediments, fillings, concretes or motars, characterized in that their rheological properties have been modified by the application of the use of animal blood as claimed in claim 29.

33. Novel industrial products constituted by sediments, pastes for refractory products, mortars or concretes subjected to firing, characterized in that their physical properties, in particular density and/or porosity have been modified by the application of the use of animal blood as claimed in claim 31.

34. Mortars, concretes or the like characterized in that, after the application of the use of animal blood as claimed in claim 29 and solidification, the cement paste which they comprise has micro-cavities of the order of 1 to 5/100 millimetres diameter.

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